Major League Baseball named the Atlanta Braves’ Chris Sale and New York Yankees’ Luis Gil as the league’s best pitchers last month.
Sale is the National League’s best pitcher in May after giving up two runs and earning 45 strikeouts in five starts. He earned a victory in all five games, improving his record to 8-1 this season. He started the month with a five-inning masterpiece against the Seattle Mariners on May 1.
Sale pitched six innings against the Boston Red Sox a week later. He played seven innings in the following games: May 14 versus the Chicago Cubs, May 20 against the San Diego Padres, and May 26 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
His performance throughout the month improved his season numbers to a 3.06 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP in 67.2 innings.
Meanwhile, Gil made six starts in May, giving up 14 hits, three runs, and 12 bases on balls. The Dominican pitcher struck out 44 batters in 38.2 innings. During the month, he led all starting pitchers in wins and WHIP (0.67). He also had the best opponents batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS (.109/.184/.178/.363).
Gil became the second pitcher in Yankees history to throw at least six innings and allowed one or zero runs in his last six starts. He has a 7-1 record with a 1.99 ERA in 11 starts this season. He has a 0.95 WHIP and 79 strikeouts in 63.1 innings pitched.
-Lance Fernandez